Melissa Lang

Fun stat I learned while I was a leader at Amazon: Statistically speaking, if you have one woman on your team, then a year from now, you'll probably have zero. If you have two women on your team, then a year from now, you'll probably have three. Demonstrating that you're making space at the table creates diverse teams, and studies have consistently shown that diverse teams make better decisions, are more productive, and have higher retention. Diversity isn't woke; it's a virtuous cycle that clearly and repeatedly demonstrates improved outcomes. We, as leaders, should not only aspire to have a diverse team; we should be vocal about how and why we do it. When people see that we care NOT ONLY about the goal, but ALSO HOW we get there, they want to come along for the ride.

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I was an executive at Amazon for 15 years, and I was fortunate to work alongside many other execs. The work of the best executives can be described in 7 words: "They make good plans and execute them." It sounds so simple, but only the best actually do it. There are a number of common mistakes and pitfalls that get in the way for everyone else. First, making a good plan means being right about what the organization should and should not do with their time and resources. At Amazon, I learned that everyone has ideas about what to work on and what to build. To quote Jeff Bezos, “Ideas are cheap. I had ten in the shower this morning.” The hard part of making the plan is carefully inspecting ideas in detail and determining which ones have the greatest value. Equally important to deciding what to do is deciding what NOT to do. Making these decisions well is actually more important than being able to build well. They are both important, but if you get the decision wrong, it doesn't matter how well you build the wrong thing. Flawless execution of a bad plan is a waste of precious resources. This is where many businesses fail--they build a great product that no one wants. Just like anything at Amazon, we didn’t want the process of making a great plan to rely on good intentions. So, we created tools and processes to help us make better choices. The combination of the Working Backwards PR/FAQ process and the annual operating planning (AOP) process forced us to do two things: First, it made us ruthlessly prioritize. Out of the 100 good ideas floating around, we focused on identifying the 20 most worth executing--the ones with the biggest potential impact. Second, it made us staff those ideas properly. We made sure each initiative had enough resources to truly succeed, and we coordinated across teams so that all dependencies were addressed before work began. Great executives are great at selecting the best new initiatives and assigning resources to build them. They are also great at saying ‘no’ to anything that isn’t in their plan. They keep their teams focused on building the most important things extraordinarily well. Simple, right?

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Just in time for the holidays, I'm thrilled to announce that we've expanded Amazon Pharmacy's Same-Day medication delivery service to the San Francisco Bay Area!   This expansion serves Bay Area customers in a region where pharmacy closures have reduced options by over 40% in the last decade. Our teams are working hard to bring this Same-Day medication delivery service to nearly half of U.S. customers by the end of 2025, filling critical access gaps in communities nationwide.   Our two new state-of-the-art pharmacy facilities in Brisbane and Richmond feature advanced automation technology and temperature-controlled storage. Licensed pharmacists are available 24/7 to answer customer questions, while our caregiver feature provides a secure way to manage medications for children, aging parents, or other family members.   I'm incredibly proud of our team's dedication to expanding medication access when and where people need it most. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gP9qc8M2

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I’ve seen a lot of posts this week about the Amazon and Meta layoffs, and my heart goes out to everyone affected. I’ve been recruiting and hiring through some wild job markets, and I’ve seen how tough and heavy this side of the cycle can be. If you were impacted, here’s my honest advice: 1. Apply for unemployment immediately. It takes a while to process. Most states back pay you for the weeks it’s pending, but please don’t wait. There’s NO shame in getting what’s owed to you. Times are tough, and this is a safety net for a reason. 2. Take your time with severance paperwork (and NEGOTIATE!) You’ll likely get a packet from HR with a severance offer and a release form (basically: you accept the package they're offering you, and you agree not to sue for wrongful termination). That’s negotiable like everything in life. You CAN ask for more money, longer coverage on your insurance, more time to vest equity. There's no guarantee that you'll get what you want, but you won't know until you try. Read all of your paperwork carefully. Do not have these negotiations over the phone. Get everything in writing. You don’t have to sign anything right away. 3. This market feels rough, but there *IS* opportunity. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: the last few years have been wild for tech. The market’s uneven and highly competitive, but there are so many new AI and startup companies getting funded right now. When companies raise, they hire. Follow people like Tim He and Haley ONeill on LinkedIn - they frequently post about companies that are raising and hiring. Use LinkedIn, and honestly, use LLMs to help you research who’s raising and growing. 4. We're hiring at Evertune 💪 We’re building teams in NYC and Seattle. We’re hiring engineers, client services folks, a financial controller, and will be opening more roles soon! If you were affected by the Amazon or Meta layoffs, or if you’re just looking for a new challenge in AI, please reach out. If we’ve crossed paths before, or have mutual connections, I’d love to chat about what we’re building and how you could be part of it. This market is still very weird, but it’s not hopeless. Take care of yourself, protect your peace, negotiate, and don’t lose sight of the fact that there are better chapters ahead 🫶

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After a highly public launch failure, Jeff Wilke (then CEO of Amazon Retail) distrusted every part of my team’s product. Here’s how I advocated for my team and product when my executive was angry: My team had screwed up the logic to display or hide a button on a web page. For technical readers, the young engineer working on it made a direct database check each time the web page was displayed. This worked just fine in testing but failed immediately under high load. Jeff was understandably frustrated with us and became skeptical about everything else we had built given that we had made this rookie mistake. This caused him to question the entire product and push us to rebuild it or shelve it entirely. Rebuilding the product would have been labor-intensive and wasteful, so I eventually leveled with him. I spoke directly, confidently, and calmly. My argument was reasonable but firm. I said, “Look, we screwed up the implementation of a button on a web page. Absolutely a terrible mistake, and if you want to punish us for it, I understand. But the technology behind the button works just fine. Don’t throw out the working technology because we messed up a button.” The important thing was that I wasn’t fighting the blame. I accepted it—but I stood up against what would have been a wasteful next step and an unfair judgment of the technology based on one miss. After I made my case, Jeff said, “That’s a pretty good argument.” He stopped pushing us to discard the technology, and he even became less upset about the problems because I wasn’t denying them. Here’s why my argument was effective: 1) I accepted blame. He knew I wasn’t denying the problem. 2) I remained calm. Emotion triggers more emotion. 3) My point was simple and firm. When you disagree with someone in a calm, agreeable manner, people will often match you. They will calm down and be able to discuss solutions, rather than just express emotions. This works because most people don’t want to be seen as ranting jerks—especially in professional settings. If they lash out at someone who is calmly stating reasonable points, they look like they’ve lost control. “Strong” leader types never want to appear out of control. Thus, if you are calm, they usually have to remain calm with you. This is an effective strategy, but it takes practice. Here are some tips to improve your responses to angry people: → Talk yourself through your response to emotional prodding before the meeting. Visualize the discussion and practice your responses. → Decide in advance: “If this escalates, I will become more quiet, calm, and firm in response.” By deciding your response in advance, you can avoid escalation. → You can always employ this technique, even if the situation has escalated. If needed, ask for a break and come back when you are feeling calmer. Readers—how else can you deal with upset executives or bosses?

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To everyone affected by the Amazon layoff, I know this news is hard to process. It's uncomfortable and uncertain. But this does not define you or your worth. I've seen talented people with great performance records face layoffs. It's rarely about you, it's about circumstances beyond our control. Here's what I want to share: 1. Use this time to invest in yourself. 2. Learn AI and emerging technologies. Building expertise now puts you ahead. 3. Find mentors who can guide your next chapter. Reach out and connect. 4. Work on your storytelling. Learn to share your impact and vision clearly. See this as a restart, not a setback. Great career moves often come from unexpected changes. You've got this. Your next chapter will be even stronger. #CareerTransition #AmazonLayoffs #ProfessionalGrowth #AISkills #CareerDevelopment #StayPositive

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In Amazon's recent financial results report, it was exciting to see two major delivery initiatives spotlighted to improve customer convenience, speed, and accessibility across the U.S. 🚚 Expanding fast delivery in rural areas: Over the past four months, we’ve increased the number of rural communities with access to Amazon’s Same-Day and Next-Day Delivery by 60%, expanding Amazon’s reliable, rapid delivery service to even more locations. 🥬 Scaling grocery delivery: Customers in over 1,000 towns and cities across the U.S. can now add fresh groceries to their Same-Day orders for delivery within hours. And, we’re on track to reach 2,300+ locations by the end of 2025. Every Amazon delivery represents a partnership between advanced technology and the people who make it possible across Transportation tech, business, and operations teams, as well as delivery partners. I’m excited to see these programs continue to scale and reach even more communities as we grow them further into 2026.

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With the news of recent layoffs at Amazon and across so many companies, I wanted to share a few resources that may be helpful for anyone navigating a transition. Pro bono volunteering is a powerful way to sharpen your skills, expand your network, and build a portfolio of meaningful work. Organizations like Taproot Foundation, Catchafire, and MovingWorlds connect professionals with organizations actively seeking expertise across technology, communications, business development, finance, operations, and more. Check out the links in the comments to learn more. For those who've been curious about exploring a pivot into social impact, I recommend checking out Social Impact Career Advisors. I recently joined as an Advisor, and this incredible group of industry leaders brings deep knowledge and insight for anyone looking to break into or grow within this space. To any Amazon volunteers who were impacted: I’d love to support you in articulating the value of your community impact experience. The leadership, initiative, and empathy you’ve demonstrated through volunteering matters. Your willingness to go above and beyond to support your community is worth bragging about.

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"Product managers are the new prompt engineers." – Tim Simmons, Chief Product Officer, Walmart International In a standout conversation with our Head Resident CPO, Renee Niemi, Tim shared a perspective that every product leader should consider as they navigate the AI era. Prompt Engineering is Now Core PM Craft If your team learns just one new skill this year, make it prompt engineering. Tim sets the expectation that PMs and UXers must be the best prompt engineers in the enterprise. The ability to interact with AI systems fluently is now as essential as understanding user needs. This shift reframes the PM role from problem solver to AI orchestrator. Implication: CPOs must actively upskill their teams and hire with prompt fluency in mind. Build with AI, Not Just for AI From copilots to custom GPTs, Tim emphasizes the massive productivity unlock when AI is embedded in how product teams work, not just what they build. Walmart’s PMs are already using AI assistants to double speed and accuracy across the product lifecycle. Implication: You need two AI strategies: 1) Build AI into your product 2) Build with AI in your processes Both matter. The former drives differentiation. The latter drives efficiency. Bottom Line: The future of product leadership demands fluency in AI, not just as a feature but as a collaborator. The podcast conversation touches upon a few other topics such as 1) how product management has become the de facto enterprise strategy, 2) Effective product management requires platform thinking, and 3 ) Embedding curiosity into the everyday work is a key function for CPOs. Thank you Tim for an excellent conversation! https://lnkd.in/gYV3XSxq Jordan Carriere Renee Niemi SC Moatti Floyd Given Kristin Kobey - ACC Henu Kotia Gaurav Dutta Parul Jain

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High-performing teams aren’t built through comfort. Like it or not, friction is the currency of building a talent-dense organization, especially one in hypergrowth. When I was at Coinbase, talent density was a constant focus. Now at Engine, I see how that same principle comes to life in new ways. Raising the bar isn’t just about better performance. It’s about creating a culture where peers, managers, and direct reports all push each other for more and better. That can feel uncomfortable, especially for people who haven’t worked in an environment where expectations keep rising. But that discomfort is what growth feels like. The right kind of friction shows who leans into challenge and who prefers comfort. I see it in hiring too. When there’s some friction in the process, you uncover grit and conviction. Discomfort isn’t the goal. It’s the natural result of ambition and accountability coming together. Friction is how talent density grows. And it’s how great cultures stay great. 💪

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